Osmania University’s exam schedule for engineering students from colleges affiliated to the university has left the students worried. The semester exams, which are to be held from the end of this month, will be held for the first, second, and third year students. While the classes were being held online, the students will now have to travel to the various exam centres for their examination. If that wasn’t enough reason to worry, unlike usual, the exams have been scheduled on consecutive days without any gap between exams.
Most students who hail from the various districts of Telangana, had gone back to their hometowns during the pandemic. Abhijith Sai, a student from MVSR college is worried about the long distance he will have to travel to take his exams. He said, “I am from Suryapet. I will have to travel for two hours to come to Hyderabad to write the examination. As the exams are scheduled continuously, for most of us, half the time will go in travelling leaving us with no time for studying.” Like several other students, Abhijit used to live in a paying guest (PG) accommodation near his college. With the pandemic, all the hostels and PGs have been closed. “There is no option of staying at our PG and staying at a hotel would not be very safe and also expensive”, added Abhijit.
The students have not only written personal letters but have also formed various groups on social media to voice their apprehensions. A paragraph from one such letter reads, “In view of the pandemic, all other universities and colleges are conducting online exams or at their own college premises. Whereas Osmania University is not taking up any of these options even during the pandemic”. Another paragraph from the same letter read, “The schedule prepared by the University has failed the students. Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) usually prepared schedules that had exams consecutively, but this time considering the pandemic situation even they have prepared the schedule with adequate number of days between exams. But Osmania University has not given any gaps at all.”
Another letter written by a student requested the University to consider the present pandemic situation and to either cancel the examination or to conduct it online. According to the students, the university has not responded or replied to any of the letters and mails sent.
According to the schedule released, the first year Bachelors of Engineering (B.E) supplementary examinations are scheduled from December 2 to 8. The second semester examinations are scheduled to be held from November 23 to December 1. The fourth semester exams are to be held from December 3 to December 11.
The students have raised concerns about how the Osmania University’s College of Engineering students have adequate number of days between their examinations but for the affiliated colleges this is not the case. They question why Osmania University cannot conduct these exams online when it is already conducting them online for the University College students. Hoping that there would be an intervention from the tech savvy IT minister KTR, the students have been tagging him along with the concerned ministers and officials on social media.